We drove to Indianapolis Friday evening, and then back on Sunday. On Friday evening there were thunderstorms forecast, and the sky was dramatic with towering cloud formations and ominous contrasts.

We went to visit Dave’s grandparents. A quick visit, and I wasn’t sure what we’d find. Things are changing there. Things are changing closer to home as well – loved family are slipping away into forgetfulness. A bittersweet reminder to cherish each moment, because who knows what’s next.

All the way back we were mostly quiet in the car, and I studied the sky again. I noticed hawks, perched on telephone wires and soaring overhead. I glimpsed a blackbird mobbing a hawk, a lone great blue heron passing overhead, a lone sandhill crane, a killdeer in cropped grass.

Work is busy, family is calling, I’ve got chores at home piled up from a weekend away. Today at work a sparrow clung to the ledge of my fifth-floor window, chirping cheerily. It reminds me of another world outside my own head, and of a big, big sky.